PHOTO: COURTESY VH1
Hair is something we change with our moods, with growth of ourselves and with many other factors of life. I cannot tell you how many times I have wanted to dye my hair bright shades these last few years, but never went beyond my box-dyed reds. I was nervous to do something bold following my near-disastrous experience with teal hair dye and bleach my sophomore year of college. In short, I had dyed the entire underside of my hair turquoise because I was experimenting with brighter and less conventional shades. As Coco Chanel says, “a woman who changes her hair is getting ready to change her life,” and let me telling you I was trying to.
As it turned out, I got a job interview last minute and freaked out; I could not present the most professional version of myself with bright teal hair… or so I thought. I attempted to bleach out the turquoise on my own (totally do not recommend this, even while in a panic) and destroyed the color. It lightened to a mint green shade. I would have been ecstatic for the result but I had an interview the following day. I panicked and ended up dyeing the entire bottom half of my hair black to counterbalance the green. For the next year-and-a-half, I had to deal with the most brittle and dry hair.
Recently, I went out on a limb to try a more current trend: dark purple. I was scrolling on Pinterest and noticed how my timeline had begun to pick up images of purple hair. I had just gotten rid of my red hair, and was looking for something to accent the already substantive change I had made for myself.
Weighing the pros and cons of doing another non-conventional color, I started to get really excited. Dark purple is muted enough that it is easily acceptable in the workplace. It is also eccentric enough to scratch my itch for a more exotic hair color. Talk about having my cake and eating it too! Even better, everyone who saw my hair loved it.
Purple is the popular option for hair right now, but dark blues are also emerging. Teal hair is common as well, although it is more difficult to apply and pull off the color successfully. Food for thought, go to a stylist if you want it done right.
Celeb Inspo
After doing some research, I noticed that the deep purple and blue hair colors have been popular among celebrities for a while, but only now are the trends really taking flight. Over the last few years, quite a few celebrity trend-setters have caught my eye. They haven’t just sported purple hair; some have also dipped their toes in the blue hair color pool as well. Let’s take a look at some favorites to help you figure out your purple or blue look!
Ke$ha wore lavender hair before the rest of us normal people had even considered it. She pulled it off like a boss and I actually wish she would go back to it. The light shade suited her and really made her stand out.
Back in 2015, Kelly Ripa shattered norms of purple/pink hair in the workplace. She went on air for her show with purple hair for about a month. It looked amazing on her, and I loved the message it gave women about not being afraid to be themselves in a work setting. Although, her intention was less of a movement and more of a tradition for herself before a vacation.
Vanessa Hudgens went through her purple hair phase a few years back, and while the traditionally dark hair looked amazing on her, you have to appreciate the raspberry ombre tones she added to it for a hot second.
While Kylie Jenner is notorious for her wig obsession, we know what she looks like in nearly every color of the rainbow. I live for her new looks, and her dip-dyed teal hair from years ago is still my favorite. She was trending before the style was trending, and I loved it.
Nicki Minaj’s love affair with brightly hued hair is well-known, and it’s no surprise that this January she briefly sported lavender and bright purple locks on Instagram. Although her color looks are frequently short-lived, purple has long been one of my favorite colors on her!
Daddy Issues creator and social media influencer, Violet Benson debuted her light purple hair in early April, and we love it! It is suiting to her personality and namesake, much more so than her iconic blonde tresses. The lavender makes her blue eyes pop!
Kelly Osbourne has shown off purple locks more than once in recent years, but most recently she has revealed her new icy lavender look to the public. It combines a difficult to achieve silver hue with the lavender and we are here for it!
Nicole Richie first debuted her purple hair back in 2014, and again in 2017. The lilac hues are gorgeous with her skin tone, and we love the look for her. Glamour described the light purple shade as reminiscent of My Little Pony, and it is definitely an accurate description. Bring it back for 2019!
Purple Hair Inspo
It didn’t really occur to me just how popular purple and blue tones were becoming until I walked into the salon. My stylist had just dyed her hair purple the week before! While getting my hair done, my Instagram feed blew up with images of friends dyeing their hair teal and similar shades of purple to my own. It felt nice to be on trend in my own way.
Purples and blues can be done in so many different ways, and in so many different hues. From highlights and lowlights, to balayage, to ombre, to mixtures of shades, colors and styles. Below are some of the best images of the different types of purple hair color.
Brown to lavender balayage treatment allows the stylist to bleach the ends of your hair in a V-shape and blend the purple in.
While this look is more pink than purple, the raspberry tones are super vibrant and make for eye-catching detail.
This version uses dark purple as a base and lighter balayage purple shades to accent the dark background.
The bluer purple of this look makes for a much brighter tone. It blends easily with the model’s brown roots.
This type of purple color is by far my favorite; I only wish my hair were long enough to apply it to my own. The perfect blend of the ombre purple is gorgeous.
Products For Hair Color Mane-tenance
Sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners are a given for basically any hair dye job, but what products actually help to preserve semi-permanent colors? It’s hard to keep purple on your head instead of in the tub, but lucky for us there are some awesome options for maintaining!
Punky color and color-depositing conditioner: Punky is one of the highest rated semi-permanent color brands at Ulta right now. I recently got some of their purple dye to maintain my own purple lowlights, and love it! They also have some fire color-depositing shampoo/conditioner combos that are highly rated
PHOTO: COURTESY ULTA
3-in-1 Color Depositing Shampoo + Conditioner
$12 at the time of publication
PHOTO: COURTESY ULTA
Naturals Semi-Permanent Hair Color
$15 at the time of publication
Splat! recently released a 94% natural so-called vegan dye that last much longer than any other semi-permanent dye I have seen to this day. My best friend tried it out recently and let’s just say we were pleasantly surprised.
PHOTO: COURTESY ULTA
Color Intensity Color Butter
$20 at the time of publication
I have talked about how much I love Joico brand products for my dyed hair before, and this time is no different. Joico’s Color Butter is an awesome and affordable option for color maintenance! At $20 a pop, it’s hard to beat for the quality.
The short answer? Heck yes. We think it is here to stay, and I know for a fact I will be trying out as many different versions of purple as I can possibly muster in the next year. Purple hair goes beyond the time of year and seasons, and the timelessness works wonders!
